Starting with a Hat
by Yoruyonaka Sakusha
Summary: The curse has gone, it's Kyo's birthday, and possibility of future should be what's on his mind. However, Yuki is the one in his thoughts. When Yuki gives Kyo an unexpected present, Kyo's feelings give a turn...for bad or worse?
1. Kyo's side

**Yes, two stories in one day. I'm on a roll. I will get back into the habit of posting regularly! This one is gonna be short though. It'll have at least three chapters. After that, I might add little tidbits that come into my head. Please enjoy reading it! Also, if you haven't read the 15th book of Fruits Basket, it might not make sense!**

**Disclaimer: Hmph. I plead the fifth!**

**... cough ...**

**No, I don't own it, so please don't sue me!**

Kyo sat on the roof as he usually did when thinking. After the curse had lifted, it left a whole lot to think about. And now, it was Kyo's birthday, which he had just celebrated with everyone (i.e Tohru, the former members of the zodiac, Hanajima, and Uotani), which seemed to leave even more to think about, like the future, _his_ future, his life. The party had taken his mind of these things though, and had he had to admit that it had been fun. He had received a couple of gifts and had really enjoyed spending time with everyone as they played games. Even Yuki had been there and they hadn't fought. Not that they had really interacted much at all.

Yuki was one of the things Kyo was currently thinking about.

The former rat of the Chinese Zodiac.

He knew that Yuki's curse had lifted as well as the others. So...now what?

He still disliked Yuki, but the reasons for this seemed to have faded with the curse. There was no longer any more he could he could blame on Yuki from this point on, as he was no longer the 'Stupid Cat', just as Yuki was no longer the 'Damn Rat'.

What would they do now? Would they still hate each other like always, or was it somehow different now?

Did he any longer have any real reason to even want to fight him anymore? Was there no longer any reason for any kind of fighting between them? Or was that all that was left now that the bonds of the Zodiac animals was gone?

Would they fade from each others lives?

Kyo didn't know, and it confused him. He had always hated Yuki for ever being alive, but having Yuki there in his life had been something that had kept him from simply killing himself, even if it was only for revenge. Having Yuki in his life was...not something he was willing to lose.

Kyo shifted his weight with a small sigh, staring at the colors the sky was made up of now, dyed by the sun.

How did Yuki feel about it anyway? Kyo knew that Yuki had every right to hate him. What else could he feel towards someone who had always been so horrible towards him? Did Yuki still hate him though, or was Kyo the only one who had lost the true hate he had thought he always felt?

Kyo had grown. He knew this. With the help of Shishou, Tohru, and everyone around him, he had grown into someone who could accept things, change things, and so much more.

Yuki had changed too. It wasn't as if Kyo couldn't notice it. He had often caught Yuki enjoying his time at school as he never seemed to have before. There was his smile, first of all, that had once seemed so emotionless but now had formed into something with meaning. He was more open, and didn't seem to hate the world as much. His clothing had changed too. He no longer wore such uptight shirts as he had used to.

So what was this now?

Was he over thinking this too much for his own good?

What exactly was Yuki to him now?

To Kyo, Yuki was...

_Yuki is..._

What was the answer? He could say all the things he used to be; A challenge, an obstacle, an enemy, the Rat. Now though...

Kyo glared at the sky in frustration.

Why was this bothering him so freaking much? There should be so much more important things on him mind right now. Like Tohru. college, jobs, _life_.

Why was Yuki the one on his mind?

Sighing, Kyo got up from his spot on the roof and made his way to the ladder. As he climbed down, he attempted to imagine leaving all thoughts of the other boy on the roof. He made his way to his room on silent, still very much cat-like footsteps, hearing small noises downstairs mixed with smells of food that could only mean Tohru was making dinner. Not paying much attention to his surroundings, Kyo flopped down on his bed.

However, as he did so, he heard the familiar sound of paper crinkling and the presence of an object under him.

Pushing himself back up so he could sit on the edge of his bed, he slid the object out of under him.

He held it in his hands, the small note attached to it staring up at him.

For a while, all he could do was stare at it.

Feeling and emotions swirled around him, intertwining and becoming confused with one another as they mixed inside him.

Disbelief, anger, relief, happiness, confusion, frustration, sadness, pain.

Everything.

It hurt.

In his hands sat a hat. A dark red hat. The material smooth and rough as all hats seemed to be, not a logo or anything tainting the surface. It wasn't store-bought, that much could be said, but it had the sense of being new. At the same time, it was painfully familiar. Pinned to the front of it was a slightly crumpled note.

To Kyo

From Yuki

What...what was he supposed to feel? Angry? Surprised? Sad? What was this? Why was this sitting in his hands now?

Kyo carefully removed the pin from the hat.

To Kyo

From Yuki

On the back of it:

Happy Birthday.

The last time a hat had been mentioned, or _the_ hat had been mentioned, Kyo had not wanted any part of what was being said. He had blocked it out, pushed it away, and refused it. He would not listen.

But now...What _was_ this?...He wasn't angry. Not really. He didn't find himself hating Yuki for this, he didn't find himself feeling anything else.

_What was this?_

Kyo failed to hear the knock on his door, his eyes and thoughts focused solely on the hat and the feelings that were dancing in and out.

Kyo did not fail to see the door open, nor the person who stepped inside the doorframe.

"Tohru says dinners-" Yuki stopped.

Kyo didn't look up at him. What would he say. What would he do? Should he be yelling at him, like he would have before, or-?

"Nii-san helped me make it." Yuki's voice was quiet, hesitant and careful.

Something wrenched inside Kyo, threatening to break.

Somehow, words managed to form from his mind.

"You made this...?" His own voice sounded quiet. It was strange to hear it. He wondered what it sounded like to Yuki, or if he was picking up any of Kyo's feelings. What did Yuki hear?

Kyo looked up at Yuki finally, not knowing what sort of expression was on his face.

What did Yuki see?

Yuki's head nodded in response to his question.

Inside, something inside Kyo finally broke.

**Right. Sorry if it didn't make much sense to some of you. I tried my hardest to make it at least a little emotional. The next chapter will be Yuki's side. No, this isn't going to be a Kyo/Yuki fic...though it has the potential to be. I'll update soon as I can! Please review, okay? I want to know what you think, even if it's just a short 'nice story' or 'that sucked'.**


	2. Yuki's side

**Sigh I'm hopeless. Really, there is no hope for me. How many months has it been since i've updated ANY of my stories!? God...I'm sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry and i pray to what gods there are that none of you have come to hate me _too_ much. I humbly offer this chaper as some means of an apology. I'm sick, so I'm sorry if I end up making this chapter sound wierd. (-sneezes-) Please enjoy to it's fullest extent.  
Oh, and just FYI, this isn't a yaoi story for those of you who were hoping for another. My other one, 'Stranded' is though.  
Read on! (-coughs/sneezes-) Ugh...**

**Disclaimer: Well, if i owned Fruits Basket, there would be yaoi. Since there be no yaoi in the books, i guess i don't own it.**

Yuki had gone to his Nii-san a week ago. When he had arrived at Ayame's shop, he still didn't have an idea of what it was he wanted to accomplish, but he followed through with the task of making the hat. Ayame had been surprisingly helpful and enthusiastic to make the hat, though he had a feeling that it had been more for the 'brotherly bonding time' than the fact that it was a gift for Kyo. It had taken quite a few tries to even make the stupid thing, and even when he had made a relatively decent looking hat, Ayame had still needed to do a few touch ups to make it look...well, normal. Either way though, it had been made and was now in Kyo's room.

Whether Kyo had it now or not, Yuki didn't know. The cat - or _former_ cat, he should say - had gone upstairs a while ago, most likely to the roof.

He had placed the hat on Kyo's bed during the party, which was quite easy since they both ignored eachother effectively the entire time. Yuki wondered what effect it would have though, giving Kyo the hat. There wasn't really any doubt in his mind that Kyo still hated him, even if it had been a lot more subtle since the lifting of the curse. Actually, even before that it had been a little less intense. Kyo had changed somewhere along the line, Yuki knew. He had gotten calmer, nicer and even more polite, even if it was still tense when the two of them were together.

Yuki certainly didn't hate Kyo, or at least he didn't anymore. It was possible that he really didn't hate Kyo at all, even though he had been the thorn in his side since they met. In fact, it hadn't even started as hate, but more as..._jealousy_. He watched from a distance as Kyo moved around so freely with his other cousins, never under the pressure to be a good little school boy, or the perfect friend for Akito, or a _tool_. And Kyo hated him for being that person, wanting to have a place in the Sohma family that he was trapped in. It had made Yuki miserable, and over time hateful of how Kyo had thought of him as an enemy just because he was the rat. Indeed, Kyo had slipped into the role of rat hating the cat, cat hating the rat willingly, adding his own personal life to justify and intensify it. Yuki had fallen into it as well, though not quite meaning to do so.

Now though, Yuki wanted out of it. He wanted to leave the curse and everything that had been with it far behind him. Including his dislike for Kyo. The question was, would Kyo desert it as well?

Because really, what Yuki wanted was-

"Yuki-kun!" Tohru appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, snapping Yuki out of his reverie. "Would you go get Kyo-kun? It's almost time for dinner!"

"Sure..." Crap. He really didn't know what Kyo's reaction to the hat would be. If he had found it already...if he was angry...What if Yuki had only made everything worse than it already was?

Tohru, seeing Yuki's slight, discomforted expression, quickly added, "Oh, I could go get him instead! I wouldn't want to trouble you!"

"Ah, no! It's fine Tohru." Yuki said, putting a reassuring smile on his face. "I'll go get him." With that, Yuki turned and walked up the stair, Tohru watching him from the door as he went. She smiled lightly. He had called her Tohru again instead of Honda-San.

Yuki climbed the stairs, not bothering to hide the worry on his face since noone was around to question it. Really, what would happen if he had made it worse? If Kyo was angry now it would be even more tense to be around him than ever. The last time he had brought up a hat, or _the_ hat, Kyo had been anything but willing to talk about it, or even really acknowledge it.

Kyo stood in front of Kyo's door for a moment before reaching out to knock on the door. However, there wasn't an answer. Yuki pushed the door open the door. "Tohru says dinners-" Yuki stopped. He had been prepared to make a quick retreat to avoid any possible anger.

Looking at Kyo though, he stopped.

Sitting at the edge of his bed, Kyo was holding the hat in his hands and just staring at it. He looked...sad...?

Cautiously, Yuki spoke to him. "Nii-San helped me make it."

Kyo's mouth opened, and after a moment formed into words. "You made this..."

Kyo looked up at him, his face expressionless.

Yuki nodded, wondering when he would blow up, or if he even would.

Kyo simply lowered his head, the hair hanging in his face blocking the view of his eyes.

Finally, Kyo spoke. "What-"

"Yuki-kun! Kyo-kun! What are you-?" Tohru stopped in the doorway. "O-oh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to interrupt or anything - dinner is ready but there's no need to worry I can wait!" She made to leave, a bright blush on her face.

"No." Kyo said quickly, standing up.

Tohru stopped hesitantly.

"It's okay. We were just heading down." Kyo set the hat on his bed again, walking forward. "Right rat?" He thumped Yuki lightly on the shoulder as he walked by.

Yuki said nothing. What was this?

"Oh...okay!" Tohru said, walking after Kyo, who headed down the hall.

Yuki came out of the doorway, watching them. _What was this_? Did Kyo just brush him off? Or did he hate him still? Or...?

Kyo looked back at him. "Hurry it up Yuki!" He paused, looking back and smirking brightly at him.

Kyo had...accepted it?

Yuki felt a small smile form on his face as he walked forward to continue down the stairs, following Kyo.

**Hmm. The ending of this chapter seemed a little week to me... I dunno. I might rewrite it when i read it over again tomorrow. (-sneezes-) I hope you all enjoyed that chapter! There'll be one more chapter on this story plot. After that I'll probably write random after-chapters of how Kyo and Yuki interact with eachother. Please review! I'll try to get to writing the next chapter soon okay? (I am still sick with nothing to do...so it'll probably be soon)**


	3. Conclusion

**I have no excuses, and so i humbly offer this chapter as means of a peace offering with the many adoring fans (-snort-) that have been looking to me for an update on _something_.**

**Disclaimer: One day, i shall write a book, and then i will be able to say that i own the story! Sadly, this is not that day.**

Okay, so maybe something inside Kyo hadn't neccesarily broken as much as it had _come free_.

Kyo found that despite how it had always been between them before, with all the fighting and dislike, he actually enjoyed being around Yuki. Being friends with him - those words still felt a little strange to Kyo - was something that he wasn't used to, of course, but he was slowly getting used to it so that he could open up more. Yuki was certainly helpful in that aspect, as he no longer seemed to have any problems with being open around him, thus allowing Kyo to relax more.

Yuki _did_ feel much more at ease around Kyo now, knowing that he did not in fact hate him.

Yuki found also that he found the time he spent with Kyo...fun, in a way. It was almost like being around a much more level headed Manabe. Of course, Kyo was still hot-headed and sometimes their personalities would clash warningly, but Yuki enjoyed being around Kyo. Though it seemed that Kyo still had a little trouble with relaxing around him, Yuki valued his friendship with Kyo. Though, Yuki had to admit the strange thought of if Kyo and Tohru were to marry (which would most certainly happen), would he see Kyo suddenly as a father figure as he had Tohru a mother figure?

This though always mangaged to make him laugh.

One day, as Kyo and Yuki were waiting for Tohru to get done with her job together, Yuki told Kyo about this.

"I've always seen her as a mother figure..." Yuki said as means of further explanation at Kyo's silence. "...so since you two are together..." Yuki trailed off, wondering if it was a bad idea telling Kyo in the first place.

"Me? ...your father figure?" Kyo's voice sounded choked up. Yuki turned to look at him.

Just as Kyo finally cracked and began laughing.

"Are you kidding me? Ahahaha!" Kyo's grabbed Yuki's shoulder as he doubled over, still laughing. "Your father!"

"It's not that funny..." Yuki muttered.

Tohru suddenly appeared in the doorway of the large building and walked towards them. She looked a little surprised to see Kyo laughing so hard his hat almost fell off.

"Uh...um..." She said uncertainly, wondering if she was interupting.

Kyo turned upon hearing her voice though, and he sombered up a bit, though couldn't keep himself from smiling.

"How was work?" He asked, still chuckling, beginning to walk towards home.

For a moment Yuki just stood there, as he had a few months ago, staring after Kyo as the red head adjusted the dark red hat on his head.

That was the first time he had seen him really laugh.

--END--

**Yes, the ending is short, isn't it? I'd like to think of it as 'short and sweet', but i'm worried it'll leave some of you unsatasfied. I'm gonna try to write little 'after chapters' as sort of Epilouge type things...so there might be more still to come! (not yaoi, sadly). Tell me if there are any spelling mistakes in there, okay? I was too lazy to do a spell check.**

**Again, I apologize for my very BIG lack of upates.**


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